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| Having-A-Go |
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Have Mat Will Travel Event Rolls into Town The Hertfordshire Bowls Development Alliance, the
County arm of the National BDA, brings together Lawn, Indoor, Crown Green and Short Mat bowling in England. The Have Mat Will Travel ‘road show’ setup this years Event in the Howard
Centre WGC ready for the first shoppers to be invited to try their hand at bowls. Thanks go
to the Howard Centre for use of the large playing area, throughout Saturday 31st March.
A steady stream of shoppers and potential bowler from 6 years old to 70+ tried their
hand at bowling on the portable Short Mat.
Roy Duke, Hertfordshire’s Short Mat President,
was assisted on the Mat by Mick Wood of Shire Park BC and Martin Barson of North Mymms BC. They ‘worked
the Mat’ to great effect helping the many visitors in their first attempt to bowl. The chance to bowl attracted all age groups appealed to families; mother , father and the kids and to aspiring ‘competitive’
bowlers. Over 50 visitors expressed the wish to receive
a follow-up call from their local bowls club to attend Taster Sessions starting this month.
Bowls as a sport is ideally positioned to deliver an activity that can involve the whole family and across the whole
age spectrum as well as providing a sport that can be played to the highest competitive levels in the
County and on the National stage. HMWT takes bowls to the people and one comment often heard was “we have seen it on
TV and its great to have a go”. In Hertfordshire we have 80 lawn bowls clubs that will all be
opening later this month.
Team members: Albert Parnell - Diana Tribe
- Roy Duke - Graham Marriner Herts (Bowls Development Officer) - Mick Wood
| HBDA Team |
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Youth Games 2012 – A first for Lawn Bowls.
On the day of the Herts Youth Games 8th
July 2012 some 1000 young people will participate in 11 sports, as representatives of their districts. Another 5000 young
people will have taken part in the trials and training programmes leading up to the day. The games have become synonymous with all that is good about sporting competition,
and although the weekend will deliver winners the emphasis is very much on taking part. The games will aim to introduce young
people new sports and link them into possible clubs to join.
For the first time Lawn Bowls will be one of
the 11 sports taking part in the Games. Over 400 young people from across the ten districts will have had ‘taster sessions’
from which sixteen young people, from each district, will have undertaken six to eight sessions of coaching at
near-by bowls clubs. The aim is to choose a team of four ‘new bowlers’ plus two reserves to represent their
respective districts. Hertsmere will be represented by Dame Alice Owens School paired with Potters Bar Bowls Club. Broxbourne
will be represented by Turnford School paired with Cheshunt B.C. etc.The first district to complete their ‘Taster
Sessions’ was Welwyn and Hatfield Sports, represented by Onslow St Audrey’s School paired with De Havilland Bowls
Club; the Club will also act as hosts for the Youth Games on the 8th July.The lower 6th
and the Year 10 at Onslow splendidly applied themselves to learning the skills needed to play bowls for the first time. The
coaching team were greatly encouraged by the enthusiasm shown by the youngsters and their desire to go from taster sessions
in the School gymnasium to the bowling green at De Havilland B.C. that will start on their return from the Easter break.Steve
Willis their P.E. Master has been exemplary in this support for the Youth Games project and in facilitating the taster session
on the School site.The project team is led by Sandra Smale who, in addition to covering a massive range of club
related tasks, is the Manager of the Welwyn & Hatfield Sports (bowls) team. Sandra was supported by fellow coaches Eddie
Plume, Diana Tribe and Graham Marriner the Herts Bowls Development Officer. Also the coaches were splendidly supported by
Dave Croft, Pearl Croft, Sandra Wise and Bob Wise, members of the De Havilland B.C. Looking
beyond the Games and at the potential legacy, this is to build upon the experience gained from the Youth Games 2012 in effectively
working with schools and the young people not only towards future Youth Games but to start to build towards
bowls being part on the School Games. Hertfordshire County bowls offers aspiring young people the chance to develop their
skills at bowling by joining a programme of coaching with the opportunity to represent their County at bowls.
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| Year 10 Onslow School |
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| Coaching Team |
Hertford Youth
Games 2012
The 8th July will see over 1,000 young people
competing across a range of sports at the Sport Village Hatfield. For the first time Bowls will be in the Games and ten schools
for the 10 District Councils will be competing at the De Havilland bowls club. This is a new venture that requires schools
to take part in a 6-8 week coaching programme with the Herts. coaching team. The challenge is to fire up the 14 to 18 year
olds for this after school activity. Success will open the door, a little wider, for schools to take bowls into their PE activities.
Birchwood High, Dame Alice Owens, Onslow St. Audrey’s school have signed-up with visits planned with Cheshunt and Stevenage
schools.It is also hoped that the pathway
of Olympic Touch, through Hertfordshire on the 8th July, will come through Hatfield ‘close-to the Games’
The Bowls4Free initiative has contributed to the recruiting of over
302 new
bowlers in 27 Hertfordshire bowls clubs with 18 clubs recruiting 10 or more bowlers.
These were the clubs
to actively participate with the HBDA by achieving the target of 10 or more new bowlers.
Each club has received up to
£350 to cover the cost of advertising, coaching,
essential equipment and providing hospitality to those attending
the 4 x 2 hr.
coaching sessions. The support of the HBDA team continues into the Indoor
session and on into the
Outdoor bowls session in 2012.
 Wroxham Primary School in Potters
Bar, Hertfordshire completed a four session 'appreciation of bowls' with the whole Year 4 class playing on the Potters
Bar green. 29 children (9 years old) had a great time using the New Age Bowls and carpet bowls. The children
were very enthusiastic and clearly enjoyed the chance to play. Many parents came to watch their off-spring and we are
to offer an invitation for them to come back and ‘try their hand’ at bowls.
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